Richardson again looks to lead Devilpups

By Chris Miller-Prep Sports Writer/The Daily News

Published: Saturday, July 27, 2013 at 11:00 AM.

“It feels good. It really does,”
Richardson
said of being Lejeune’s go-to back. “It feels good, but I like being a team player and getting everybody involved. We are going to work harder than ever and this year we have a lot of people who have put in the same work I have put in.”

Schwartz has seen
Richardson
take offseason workouts more serious this summer.

“He’s more of a hard worker, he’s more of a leader and he’s more concerned about the team than himself,” Schwartz said. “He’s more into it and he’s taking ownership of the team. Jamaz is almost like an assistant coach on the field. He’s always positive and he’s always helping out. He is ready for the season.”

Richardson
certainly does his part when he carries the ball.

Despite being just 5-foot-6 and weighing in at 147 pounds, he’s been an elusive back and has shown an ability to break for long gains.

As a sophomore in 2011,
Richardson
rushed for 484 yards on just 51 carries while playing behind Akile Jones, who ran for 2,835 yards and 37 touchdowns.

Richardson
said he doesn’t necessarily have one direct running style. Instead, when running the ball, he uses his speed and pretend he’s back in his elementary school days when the game of tag was popular during recess.

It will be hard for Lejeune’s Jamaz Richardson to duplicate what he did last year running the football.

As a junior, Richardson led the area with 2,313 yards and 23 touchdowns, averaging 8.8 yards per carry.

And, for good measure, he had 15 receptions for 186 yards and another score. Richardson finished the year as a first-team player on The Daily News all-area team.

But fast forward to this year and Richardson, now a four-year varsity senior, wants more.

But just how much more?

“I just want to do better than I did last year,” Richardson said. “I want to get more yards, I want to get more touchdowns and I want to win more games.”

Lejeune coach Darryl Schwartz believes Richardson will get those yards and touchdowns.

“Jamaz will definitely match or do better than he did last year,” he said. “He knows what he can do. He can catch, he can run and he can also throw. He’s durable.”

The 16-year-old Richardson is particularly interested in getting more victories this year after Lejeune followed a four-game winning streak by losing its final three games last season to finish 5-7 and 3-2 in the Coastal Plains 1-A Conference.

Lejeune’s season ended with a 34-20 home playoff loss to a Rosewood team that the Devilpups beat 41-15 earlier in the year.

Lejeune opens official practice this season Aug. 1 and kicks off the regular season Aug. 23 at Swansboro. Richardson said he’s been working hard this summer to prepare.

“I’ve been busy. I’ve gone to a lot of football camps and I’ve been going to the gym,” Richardson said. “I feel like I’m changing already and that I’m getting faster, stronger and bigger.”

And because of his work, Richardson anticipates his number being called many times as the Devilpups try to improve from last year.

Still, he knows he can’t do it alone.

“It feels good. It really does,” Richardson said of being Lejeune’s go-to back. “It feels good, but I like being a team player and getting everybody involved. We are going to work harder than ever and this year we have a lot of people who have put in the same work I have put in.”

Schwartz has seen Richardson take offseason workouts more serious this summer.

“He’s more of a hard worker, he’s more of a leader and he’s more concerned about the team than himself,” Schwartz said. “He’s more into it and he’s taking ownership of the team. Jamaz is almost like an assistant coach on the field. He’s always positive and he’s always helping out. He is ready for the season.”

Richardson certainly does his part when he carries the ball.

Despite being just 5-foot-6 and weighing in at 147 pounds, he’s been an elusive back and has shown an ability to break for long gains.

As a sophomore in 2011, Richardson rushed for 484 yards on just 51 carries while playing behind Akile Jones, who ran for 2,835 yards and 37 touchdowns.

Richardson said he doesn’t necessarily have one direct running style. Instead, when running the ball, he uses his speed and pretend he’s back in his elementary school days when the game of tag was popular during recess.

“My running style is don’t let anybody touch you,” Richardson said. “It’s like a game of tag. You don’t let anybody get a hand on you. Last year people would bring me down so easily, but that won’t happen this year. I’m pretty confident in me and my team that we will be good and that we will go pretty far this year.”